Pillars of the Church
I am the foster father of Jesus and this feast day remembers my life as a worker. I was a carpenter and my Son joined me in his early years.
St. Joseph
I am the patron saint of educators and teachers. From France, I created schools for poor boys across the country and later founded the Brothers of Christian Schools.
St. John Baptist de La Salle
I am the patron saint of France and military members. At the age of 12, I received visions and heard the voices of Catherine of Alexandria, Michael the Archangel, and Margaret of Antioch. During the Hundred Years War, I commanded the French Army and recaptured Orleans and Troyes from the English. Later I was burned at the stake for heresy and witchcraft.
I am the patron saint of Ireland and Nigeria. I was taken by slavers and brought to Ireland. I was forced to work as a shepherd for 6 years before escaping. I became a missionary trying to convert pagans. My feast day is March 17th and is a very popular holiday.
St. Patrick
I am the patron saint of Venice and notaries. Most of what is known about my life comes from the New Testament. I went with Paul and Barnabas on a missionary journey and later became an evangelist. My gospel is the oldest and shortest.
St. Mark
I led a life dedicated to the church and fought against heresy before being named a doctor of the church. I became bishop of Alexandria and fought against Arianism before being exiled to Gaul by Constantine.
St. Athanasius
I lived in El Salvador in the 1900s during a time of political turmoil. I was appointed archbishop of San Salvador and was shaken by the assassination of six priests in my archdiocese. A military junta seized control of our government and I criticized the US government for backing them. My weekly radio show was known as the best source of truth in my country before I was also assassinated.
St. Oscar Romero
I am a patron saint of Italy, Europe, and fire prevention. I was the 23rd (!!) child of my parents and protested my mother’s wish for me to find a husband. I entered the Third Order of Dominicans and lived a life of prayer and austerity. I worked tirelessly for the crusade against the Turks and for peace between Florence and the Pope. Nowadays I rank high among the mystics and spiritual writers of the Church.
St. Catherine of Siena
I am the patron saint of Italy and animals. I was born into a wealthy family, but after serving in a battle I gave up my inheritance and clothes I was wearing to live a life of service.
St. Francis of Assisi
I am from Italy and am the patron saint of infertility, parenthood, and difficult marriages. After my cruel husband died, I joined the Augustinian nuns and later developed wounds on my forehead that resembled the crown of thorns of Christ. A shrine is dedicated to me in South Philadelphia.
St. Rita of Cascia
I am the patron saint of Poland. I was born in Krakow, was ordained a priest, then the bishop of Krakow. Later I became involved in the political situation of Poland, excommunicated the king, and then the king executed me with his own hands.
St. Stanislaus
I am the patron saint of Malta and Valetta. I was the pope tasked with implementing the historic Council of Trent, trying to fix the broken and shattered church.
St. Pius V
I am the patron saint of theologians and converts. I am a sinner turned saint and represented the virtue of wisdom last month. After living a life of partying and creature-pride, I converted to Catholicism. I am now a prominent Doctor of the Church.
St. Augustine of Hippo
I am the patron saint of doctors, unborn children, and wives. I was born near Milan and was an active member of the St. Vincent de Paul Society and earned degrees in medicine and surgery. In my final pregnancy, the doctor found a tumor in my uterus and a surgery removed it but caused complications after my child’s birth and died a week later. My shrine is in Warminster, PA next to Archbishop Wood High School.
St. Gianna Beretta Molla
I was born into a noble Scottish family growing up part-Catholic and part-Presbyterian. I committed to Catholicism and joined the Jesuits and secretly went back to Scotland to spread Catholicism. I was betrayed, captured, and tortured before dying as a martyr.
St. John Ogilvie
We were two of Jesus’ apostles. One of us was the son of Alphaeus and known as “the Lesser” while the other was from the same town as Peter and Andrew.
Sts. Philip and James
I am a title for Mary after I appeared to three children in Portugal. I asked them to pray for peace, the end of the World War, and the conversion of Russia.
Our Lady of Fatima
I was born during Spain’s Golden Age and became a Franciscan. I became well known for charity and healing others with the Sign of the Cross. One estimates that 2,000 people per week came to visit me.
St. Salvator of Horta
I received the title of the “Father of Scholasticism” for my attempts to analyze the truths of faith. I entered a monastery and was later elected the abbot. My abbey became a monastic school and began to publish theological works. I was appointed Archbishop of Canterbury and was in and out of exile due to opposition from King William Rufus.
St. Anselm
My father was a Muslim leader in Spain, but I was kind to Christian prisoners. When I became sick, I sought the healing waters at San Vincenzo shrine and left relieved of my illness.
St. Casilda